It’s no secret that investing for retirement involves some level of uncertainty. Depending on your personality, that uncertainty may deter you from taking risk, or it may entice you to go big and chase a larger potential return.
The first financial advice I got as a child was from my grandfather, and I remember it vividly. He said, “David, it doesn’t matter which party is running the country. What matters is investing in the right companies. Politicians come and go, but corporate brands are here to stay.”
In that spirit, I want to give you a few steps to zero in on your tax burden and help you find ways to be more efficient.
Many people think about cash flow the wrong way. They treat it as a scoreboard — money in, money out, whatever’s left is what you have to work with. But cash flow isn’t just a number. It’s architecture. And like any well-designed structure, it should be built intentionally, with your actual life at the center.
Whether you filed your taxes on time or you filed an exemption, tax season is a great time to run a diagnostic review on where you’ve been in the last couple of years and what your tax situation looks like going forward.
In that spirit, I want to give you a few steps to zero in on your tax burden and help you find ways to be more efficient.
Early in your career, doing your taxes can seem like a fairly simple process. Pick your favorite software, plug in a few numbers, and that’s it.
But even as a young professional, being tax-efficient is an important step to achieving your overall financial goals. Here are five things you need to consider before doing the bare minimum each April.
One thing I’ve experienced throughout my career is that when we have a good year in the markets, as we did in 2025, folks sure don’t seem to have many questions for their financial advisory team!
That said, when we have a stretch of market volatility, typically hand in hand with daily shock-and-awe news headlines — think the first two months and maybe three of 2026 — the (natural) reaction is — uh-oh.
You’ve probably read that one of the Four Horsemen of relationship strife is money. Misalignment on money issues is one of the main problems that can sink a relationship if you’re not careful.
Who needs a trust? Think about it like specialty insurance. Some people genuinely need it based on their circumstances; others don’t. You wouldn’t add rust protection to a vehicle unless your environment called for it. The same idea applies here.
When you’re early in your career, much of financial advice focuses on the essentials — budgeting, saving, retirement contributions — but what a lot of people neglect is what would happen to those assets in case of an early or unexpected loss of life. It’s not a fun topic, but, especially once you’ve started a family, it becomes really important.
It’s no secret that many Millennials have had a rough go of it when it comes to the financial instability they have faced during much of their working lives. Between slow wage growth, multiple financial crises, and an inflated housing market, it’s been difficult for many to grow their wealth at a similar rate to their parents and grandparents.
*Representatives are licensed to offer insurance and annuity products in AL, FL, GA, IL, IN, KY, MA, ME, MI, MO, NH, OH, SC, and TN and are licensed to offer investment products in AK, AL, AR, AZ, CA, CO, CT, FL, GA, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MA, MD, ME, MI, MO, MS, NC, NE, NH, NM, NV, NY, OH, OR, PA, SC, TN, TX, VA, WA, Washington DC and WV. This website and its content are not intended for residents of other states. Securities offered through: The O.N. Equity Sales Company, Member FINRA/SIPC, One Financial Way, Cincinnati, OH 45242. 513.794.6794 Investment Advisory Services offered through The O.N. Investment Management Company. Estate Planning Services provided in conjunction with your licensed legal advisor.